Tata Nano Air compressed Power

It was a great headline and some of the best promotion  a motor vehicle builder would want but it will be highly unlikely that  vehicle conglomerate Tata will produce the Nano Minicar for the reported $2500 retail price tag, However thats not what this site is all about but the Indian monster manufacturer  have reported to expect a future release of a compressed air model.

The original petrol model was to deliver 25Kw (33hp) and of course a CO2 emitter again this in not what this site is about but the compressed air  engine will produce only 33% of that and that will occur in the production of the electricity to drive the electrics in the engine . Cold air, compressed in tanks to 300 times atmospheric pressure, is heated and fed into the cylinders of a piston engine. No combustion takes place, so technically there is no pollution actually produced by the car, although the energy needed to compress the air may still come from polluting oil- or coal-burning power stations.

Cost wise based on current electricity prices, and Im sure these will all rise is about $3 USD for 200 kms of travel.

In a perfect world  providing again pricing of this technology is realistic this will be a terrific option especially for developing countries and their need for transport.

I am looking forward to see where this is heading but like all alternative fuel technology its only early early days in relevance its like the television has just been invented and we are talking about colour.

MDI compressed air engine

“In MDI’s original air engine, one piston compresses air from the atmosphere, holding it on a small container that feeds the high pressure air tanks with a small amount of air. Then that portion of the air is sent to the second piston where it works. During compression for heating it up, there is a loss of energy due to the fact that it cannot receive energy from the atmosphere as the atmosphere is less warm than it. Also, it has to expand as it has the crank. MDI’s engine works with constant torque, and the only way to change the torque to the wheels is to use a pulley transmission of constant variation, losing some efficiency. When vehicle is stopped, MDI’s engine had to be on and working, losing energy. In 2001-2004 MDI switched to a design similar to that described in Regusci’s patents, which date back to 1990″

MDI compressed air engine

“In MDI’s original air engine, one piston compresses air from the atmosphere, holding it on a small container that feeds the high pressure air tanks with a small amount of air. Then that portion of the air is sent to the second piston where it works. During compression for heating it up, there is a loss of energy due to the fact that it cannot receive energy from the atmosphere as the atmosphere is less warm than it. Also, it has to expand as it has the crank. MDI’s engine works with constant torque, and the only way to change the torque to the wheels is to use a pulley transmission of constant variation, losing some efficiency. When vehicle is stopped, MDI’s engine had to be on and working, losing energy. In 2001-2004 MDI switched to a design similar to that described in Regusci’s patents, which date back to 1990″

TaTa Nano in 2012-2013

Tata Motors’ total sales (including exports) of Tata commercial and passenger vehicles in July 2012 were 73,491 vehicles, higher by 15%, over July 2011. The company’s domestic sales of Tata commercial and passenger vehicles for July 2012 were 68,627 nos., higher by 18%, over 57,990 nos., sold in July last year.

Cumulative sales (including exports) for the company for the fiscal are 262,299 nos., higher by 2%, over 256,800 nos., sold last year.

Commercial Vehicles
The company’s sales of commercial vehicles in July 2012 in the domestic market were 42,387 nos., a 4% growth, compared to 40,798 vehicles, sold in July last year. LCV sales were 29,601 nos., a growth of 19%, compared to 24,962 vehicles sold in July, last year. M&HCV sales stood at 12,786 nos., lower by 19%, compared to 15,836 vehicles sold in July, last year.

Cumulative sales of commercial vehicles in the domestic market for the fiscal are 157,685 nos., a growth of 2% over last year. Cumulative LCV sales are 109,956 nos., a growth of 19% over last year, while M&HCV sales stood at 47,729 nos., lower by 22%, over last year.

Passenger Vehicles
Sales of passenger vehicles for July 2012 are at 26,240 nos., higher by 53%, over 17,192 nos., sold in July last year. Sales of the Tata Nano were 5,485 nos., higher by 68%, compared to 3,260 nos., sold in July, last year. The Indica range sales were 8,852 nos., higher by 51%, over 5,860 nos., sold in July, last year. The Indigo range recorded sales of 6,816 nos., higher by 40%, over 4,877 nos., sold in July, last year. The Sumo/ Safari/ Aria/ Venture range sales were 5,087 nos., higher by 59%, over 3,195 nos., sold in July 2011.